...if by a "Liberal" they mean someone who looks ahead and not behind, someone who welcomes new ideas without rigid reactions, someone who cares about the welfare of the people -- their health, their housing, their schools, their jobs, their civil rights, and their civil liberties -- someone who believes we can break through the stalemate and suspicions that grip us in our policies abroad, if that is what they mean by a "Liberal," then I'm proud to say I'm a "Liberal." JFK

Friday, August 25, 2006

moveon ads

Remember, this is the guy represents those of us that live in North Elba.

Bob Harris at Huffington Post used photoshop to get a look at GW's press conference notes. It's well worth reading his comments.

Bush apparently has a seating chart that includes which reporters he supposed to call on (middle sheet in the photo). Two of the reporters were CBS Radio Mark Knoller and NBC Kelly O'Donnell, both were called on.

Most people know the Iraq War is expensive. Tens of billions of dollars a year. I've read 8 billion dollars a month. Sounds about right. So that is:

$2 billion a week$267 million a day$11 million an hour

This of course doesn't include the human and societal costs. The big question of course is whether spending all that money is making us safer today. Being a big bleeding heart liberal, I would argue NO. I wonder what else we could be doing with that kind of money.

The UK Guardian has an article which claims the winner of the "War on Terror" is Iran.

The study said Iran had been swift to fill the political vacuum created by the removal of the Taliban in Afghanistan and Saddam Hussein in Iraq. The Islamic republic now has a level of influence in the region that could not be ignored.

In particular, Iran has now superseded the US as the most influential power in Iraq, regarding its former adversary as its "own backyard". It is also a "prominent presence" in its other war-torn neighbour, Afghanistan, according to Chatham House's analysts.

The report said: "There is little doubt that Iran has been the chief beneficiary of the war on terror in the Middle East.

Wednesday, August 23, 2006

A group of hard working volunteers have been working on the formation of a Community-owned retail store for Saranac Lake. They have a website called www.community-store.org.

The community store concept is an idea that is slowly catching on in some small communities in the country. The Powell, WY Mercantile is often the store that community store groups want to use as a model. From the Casper Tribune:

The people running the Powell Mercantile didn't expect their downtown clothing store to become a tourist destination, but people come to The Merc by the busload.

Smaller contingents pull up in cars from Torrington, Riverton, Newcastle, Rawlins and Ely, Nev. But these particular tourists come not with cameras, but with questions about community ownership.

Or this:

"We've made money since day one," Witzeling said.

The cool thing about community stores is that they are owned and operated by community members. But it is not a co-op, it's about as capitalistic a company as they come. FAQ about community stores can be found HERE. The volunteers behind the Saranac Lake Community Store deserve 100% community support for one reason. As their website points out, their mission is to bring reasonably priced goods to Saranac Lake. How can anyone be opposed to that?

Tuesday, August 22, 2006

Here is what Rep. John Sweeney has to say about the Iraq War and Pres. Bush. (Times Union)

He applauded President Bush's declaration Monday that troops will remain in Iraq to "finish the job," calling him "a determined leader who is absolutely right to say the troops will be there until we achieve our objective."

Sweeney, like Bush, disagree with the majority of US citizens about the Iraq War. So, if you want our troops to stay in Iraq for the next 2.5 years, I guess John Sweeney is the guy to vote for.

MORE

Do you think Iraq and Afghanistan War veterans should get a $1500 bonus and improved health insurance benefits?

John Sweeney doesn't, he voted against H.R. 3289 and H.R. 1815

Do you think you should be able to purchase cheap drugs from Canada?

John Sweeney doesn't, he voted against H.R. 2427.

How do you feel about the oil and gas industry right now?

John Sweeney loves them and he's in favor of price gouging, voted against H.R. 3402.

Do you think American companies that have moved offshore, to escape paying taxes, should qualify for Federal loans?

A neurobiology professor, Dr. Dario Ringach, has given up animal research because of pressure from the UCLA Primate Freedom Project. This group published a picture of Dr. Ringach along with his address, phone number and email address on their website.

Anti-animal research groups are trumpeting Ringach’s move as a victory, while some researchers are worried that it could embolden such groups to use more extreme tactics.

Ringach’s name and home phone number are posted on the Primate Freedom Project’s Web site, and colleagues and UCLA officials said that Ringach was harassed by phone — his office phone number is no longer active — and e-mail, as well as through demonstrations in front of his home.

In an e-mail this month to several anti-animal research groups, Ringach wrote that “you win,” and asked that the groups “please don’t bother my family anymore.”

Colleagues suggested that Ringach, who did not return e-mails seeking comment, was spooked by an attack on a colleague. In June, the Animal Liberation Front took credit for trying to put a Molotov cocktail on the doorstep of Lynn Fairbanks, another UCLA researcher who does experimentation on animals. The explosive was accidentally placed on the doorstep of Fairbanks’s elderly neighbor’s house, and did not detonate.

There is a bill in committee called the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act (H.R. 4239) that would supposedly make it a crime to harrass animal researchers or for that matter any enterprise that uses animals for 'profit'. The act has primarily Repulican sponsors which makes me suspect that legal civil rights will be taken away from protesters.